Computer Generation
1st Generation (1940-1956)-Vacuum Tubes
The first computer used Vacuum Tubes for circuitry and magnetic drums for memory, and was often enormous, taking up entire rooms. They were very expensive to operate and in addition to using a great deal of electricity, generated a lot of heat, which was often the cause of malfunctions. First generation computer relived on machine language to perform operations, and they could only solve one problem at a time. Input was based on punched cards and paper tape, and output was displayed on printouts.
The UNIAC (UNIVersal Automatic Computer) and ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) computers are examples of first-generation computing devices. The UNIVAC was the first commercial computer delivered to a business client, the U.S. Census Bureau in 1951.
2nd Generation (1956-1963)-Transistors
Transistors replaced vacuum tubes and used in the second generation of computers. The transistor was invented in 1947 but did not see widespread use in computers until the late 50s. The transistor was far superior to the vacuum tubes, allowing computers to become smaller, faster, cheaper, more energy-efficient and more reliable then their first generation predecessors. Though the transistor still generated a great deal of heat that subjected the computer to damage, it was a vast improvement over the vacuum tube. Second-generation computers still relied on punched card for input and printout for output.
Second-generation computers moved form cryptic binary machine language to symbolic, language, which allowed programming to specify instructions in words. High-level programming languages were also being developed at this time, such as early versions of COBOL and FORTRAN. These were also the first computers that stored their instructions in their memory, which moved form a magnetic drum to magnetic core technology. The first computers of this generation were developed for the atomic energy industry.
3rd Generation (1964-1967)-Integrated Circuits
The development of the integrated circuits was the hallmark of the third generation computers of computers. Transistor were miniaturized and place on silicon chips, called semiconductors which drastically increased the spend and efficiency of computers.
Instead of punched card and printouts, user interacted with third generation computer through keyboard and monitors and interfaced with an operating system, which allowed the device to run many different applications at one time with a central program that monitored the memory computers for the first time became accessible to a mass audience because they were smaller and cheaper than their predecessors.
4th Generation (1971-present) Microprocessors
The microprocessors brought the fourth generation of computers, as thousands of integrated circuits were built onto a single silicon chip, what in the first generation filled and entire room could now fit in the palm of the hand. The Intel 4004 chip, developed in 1971, located all the components of the computer-form the central processing unit and memory to input/output controls-on a single chip.
5th Generation (Present and Beyond) Artificial Intelligence
Fifth generation computing devices, based no artificial intelligence, are still in development, though there are some application, such as voice recognition, that are being used today. The use of parallel processing & superconductors is helping to mark artificial intelligence a reality. Quantum computation &
Molecular & nano technology will radically change the face of computers in yes to come. The goal of fifth-generation computing is to develop devices that respond to natural language input & are capable of learning & self-organization.
v laptop and palmtop computer
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